Islam Makhachev wants to have a lengthy championship reign in another division.
Makhachev defended his lightweight title four times, the most in the division’s history, before moving up to welterweight. The former lightweight champ is set to challenge Jack Della Maddalena for the welterweight title in the main event at UFC 322 on Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York.
While becoming a UFC double champ would be a dream come true for most, it isn’t enough for Makhachev. Makhachev wants to record more welterweight title defenses than Kamaru Usman, who had five during his reign.